Norris McWhirter traced his McWhirter
ancestors back to the town of Maybole. In June of 2003 he returned to
Ayrshire as the keynote speaker for a McWhirter Clan gathering. His sudden
death is a loss felt by all those with connections to the McWhirter
family.

BBC News reported that Norris McWhirter
suffered a heart attack while playing tennis at his Wiltshire home on
Monday evening, his family said.

During the 1970s and 1980s he was a
fixture of the BBC One children's show Record Breakers, hosted by the late
Roy Castle. McWhirter, whose identical twin brother Ross was murdered by
the IRA in 1975, had also been a successful athlete and worked as a BBC
sports journalist. Like his brother, he also held strong political views.

McWhirter's family said in a statement:
"Norris cared passionately about Great Britain, democracy and the rule of
law and was always active in politics, but usually behind the scenes. "The
two things he attached most importance to were the freedom of the
individual and the sovereignty of the United Kingdom. Apart from his
family, his great loves were visiting the 1,049 offshore British islands
and having a good game of tennis. He was energetic to the last."

McWhirter's family said in a statement:
"Norris cared passionately about Great Britain, democracy and the rule of
law and was always active in politics, but usually behind the scenes. The
two things he attached most importance to were the freedom of the
individual and the sovereignty of the United Kingdom. Apart from his
family, his great loves were visiting the 1,049 offshore British islands
and having a good game of tennis. He was energetic to the last."